Global branding agency Jones Knowles Ritchie (JKR) has a new executive creative director.

Stuart Radford joins JKR after 13 years at various agencies, such as Design Bridge and Partners, Superunion and The Partners. His brand work has included Aston Martin, NASA, BBC 2 and Eurovision and London Symphony Orchestra.

His hire reflects the agency's growth — it recorded a 25% uptick in new categories over the last year. New clients include Uber, Mozilla, Yahoo, Paramount and Walmart. At the agency, he will lead several new accounts, including a consumer electronics brand, and legacy clients.

“At JKR, our goal is to assemble a disproportionate share of the industry’s top talent. It’s what gives us our distinct edge. It’s what fuels the work we create. Stuart is one of those talents. He’s known for his game-changing work in branding,” says Tosh Hall, Global Chief Creative Officer at JKR.

"I’m excited to join JKR at such a pivotal time when the studio is evolving, expanding its influence into new sectors and pushing the boundaries of what branding can do,” added Radford, who reports to Hall. 

Sean Thomas now moves from executive creative director to global ECD, alongside Lisa Smith.